The Inferno is written through a medieval Catholic perspective. Dante is introduced to the idea that even though Hell was created to punish it was done for love and justice of mankind by God. God wanted humans to have freedom so he gave them free will. With this allowance comes responsibility and consequences. In the Vestibule of Hell, the gates of Hell display the inscription, “Sacred justice moved my architect; I was raised hereby divine omnipotence, Primordial love and ultimate Intellect.” (VII, 4-6) God saw sin being committed and had to do something. Those who where compelled to sin in life were also compelled to punish themselves because the two are linked together. The choice to do the sin is intertwined with the choice to accept responsibility and take the punishment. For every injustice, justice must be served. The sinners made the choice to sin so inadvertently they also made the choice. The punishments in hell coincide with the crime to create the ultimate form of justice.
When Hell is brought to mind words such as evil, hate, and suffering comes to mind not love. I believe there is a misunderstanding that Satan created Hell but actually God formed hell in light of justice and love. On the contrary to common misbelief, Dante goes into hell actually in search of love, from Beatrice and God. In circle six Virgil explains how fraud prevents love, “All who rail at God and His commands in their hearts’ dark. Fraud, which is a canker to every conscience, may be practiced by a man on those who trust him, and on those who have resposed no confidence. The latter mode seems only to deny the bond of love which all men have from Nature.” (XI, 50-57) This suggests that God love for mankind is great and wants to create a relationship but fraud enables humans to be close to God. This proves that God loves but the materialistic world blurs mankind's vision from seeing that.
Dante's Inferno was the first to open the eyes of many to many concepts. The idea that God created Hell not only to punish but to seek justice and love is hard to grasp, even for Dante in the book. God has a plan for all humans but not everyone can go to heaven yet he still loves everyone.
